Apple CarPlay software on Chevy’s 2016 Corvette Stingray

Chevy’s 2016 Corvette Stingray a 6.2-liter small-block V8 that goes from 0 to 60 in 3.8 seconds), it was what was inside the dash. The ‘16 Vette is one of the first US production cars to come with Apple CarPlay software inside and Siri riding shotgun.CarPlay is a safer way to use your phone behind the wheel. When you connect your handset to the Vette’s USB port, CarPlay turns this snarling hunk of American road muscle into an iPhone on wheels by replacing the Chevy’s clunky standard infotainment system with a slick Apple interface.CarPlay is coming to a slew of vehicles from the world’s biggest automakers over the next 12 months, the Stingray is the very first car to get Apple’s vehicular blessing.

Using CarPlay

Connected car technology CarPlay is as easy as it gets. Just plug one end of a Lightning cable into your phone and the other end into your car’s USB port. A CarPlay icon will then appear on your car’s in-dash screen. Just tap it and you’re set.

CarPlay then declutters your car’s infotainment setup by switching it with a simplified home page featuring oversized icons for your Phone, Apple Music, Maps, Messages, and other apps, along with a Home button icon, your connectivity status, and the time. It’s as if someone took your iPhone and installed it in your dashboard.

Apple’s decision to use giant icons proved incredibly helpful when looking for specific apps while driving.And when you’re traveling at 100 65 miles an hour, the ability to keep your eyes on the road is a very big deal.

Siri is your copilot

To make sure you keep your eyes on the road and your hands on the wheel, CarPlay comes with Apple’s voice-powered Siri virtual assistant.To use Siri in the Corvette, you have to press and hold the steering wheel voice command button. Pressing and immediately releasing the button launches the Vette’s own voice assistant.

You can tell Siri to make phone calls, send and read emails and texts, get directions, and play any song in Apple’s Music library. And of course, you can ask her trivia questions like, how tall is the Empire State Building? (1,454 feet, including the antenna.) Or you can just ask what it’s like to be her, which as she puts it, involves people constantly asking her questions.

There are limits to what Siri can do, though. Apple doesn’t let her reply to questions that require complex Web searches, because, well, you’re driving. CarPlay won’t display links to websites or any text, for that matter, to avoid distractions. (Google puts similar restrictions on Android Auto.)

Driving Music

Apple Music is incredibly useful while driving, and with Siri playing DJ you can listen to nearly any song or artist you can think of without having to fiddle with any touchscreens or dials.

Maps without the Google

If you’re the kind of person who depends on Google Maps to get around, I’ve got some bad news: You can’t use it with CarPlay. Instead, Apple forces you to use its own Apple Maps software, which is a major letdown.